In Part 1 of this article, economic incentives were estimated for relaxing the requirement that biocrude entering the refinery infrastructure be oxygen (O2)-free. It was concluded that an accurate estimate of these incentives is not possible without a significant amount of additional data. Part 2 examines key issues that must be addressed and the associated data needed for this constraint to be relaxed.

Major trends in the global hydrocarbon processing industry include the regulatory-driven demand for clean, low-emissions fuels. Two decades of global efforts have shown that dimethyl ether (DME) can satisfy these drivers.

Skid-mounted units are omnipresent in the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI), as facilities are scattered in remote locations, and site construction is time-consuming and expensive. Skid units are equally popular in downstream refineries and the chemical processing industry (CPI).

In the processing industries, companies rely on their physical assets to guarantee that they are always producing at the same capacity, or preferably higher, than they began. To achieve these high levels of production, assets must be readily available.

While equipment reliability is not a new concept in hydrocarbon processing facilities, it is increasingly becoming the top priority for plant managers. Plant managers realize that operational efficiency is far from being a passing trend, and is closely linked to the quality and reliability of the equipment used.

Environment and Safety

Process safety cannot be ensured solely by design, as it relies on the effective operability of safety and control components. Effective operability is influenced by factors that include the condition of components and operational practices.

Each year, Hydrocarbon Processing devotes an issue to the topic of clean fuels—and rightly so. As the world continues to welcome more vehicles on the road, and as emerging economies invest in civil, industrial and energy projects, global fuels demand is forecast to increase through the end of the decade.

At a recent conference attended by failure investigation professionals in San Antonio, Texas, a participant spoke about an explosion and fire event on a multistage horizontally opposed compressor in oxygen (O2) service. He had scant data, but he knew the machine did not have cylinder lubrication.

Major suppliers are expanding their automation-related service capabilities from project and engineering services through services for operations and maintenance. This is happening partly in response to overall automation market conditions, but largely in response to evolving user challenges and requirements.

India is the seventh-largest country in the world by land mass. Urbanization is taking place at a rapid pace: According to the country’s 2011 census, more than 377 MM Indians live in nearly 8,000 towns and cities. This count represents more than 31% of the country’s total population.

According to OPEC’s World Oil Outlook 2016, desulfurization capacity additions represent the largest capacity increases among all process units to 2040. This trend is due to increased regulations on the amount of sulfur allowed in transportation fuels.

In October 2016, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) announced that it will implement a new regulation that calls for the sulfur content in marine fuels to be reduced from 3.5% to 0.5%. The new regulation will go into effect in January 2020. This action by the IMO will have a profound impact on the maritime and refining industries worldwide, as well as on the environment. This month’s Business Trends section provides an overview on the anticipated impacts of the IMO’s decision on petroleum product markets.